NY model is first Irish person to exceed 100,000 Facebook fans

Faye Dinsmore, an Irish model living and working in New York, has become the first Irish person to pass 100,000 fans on Facebook, surpassing personalities like Pierce Brosnan, Ronan Keating, Tommy Tiernan and Jonathan Rhys Meyers.

According to the Irish Social Media Monitor, she has surpassed Brosnan, who has more than 80,000 fans, Keating, who has more than65,000 fans, Tiernan, who has more than 52,000 fans, Glen Hansard, who has more than 43,000 fans, and Rhys Meyers, who has 34,938 fans.

Her blog, which has a look eerily similar to social media blog Mashable, contains blog posts about the life of an Irish model in New York, her fashion and the people and places she’s visited.

Model blog inspiration

Siliconrepublic.com asked Dinsmore, who studied French and Classics at Trinity, about her inspiration for the blog.

“Not even for a moment did I think I’d get 1,000 fans, never mind 100,000 fans! The inspiration is a curious little tale. A couple of months ago I found out that I would be replacing another international model, Coco Rocha, as the face of a brand in 2011. When I found out I Googled her and saw she had a Facebook fanpage and a blog.

“At the time, I’d been getting between 100 and 200 friend requests every day on Facebook from all over the world, in particular from France, Spain, South America and Asia. So I discussed it with my agent, and it seemed like a good idea to set up a Facebook page for these people.

“After three months, I began to find that a Facebook fanpage can be quite limiting. So, it’s easy to share photos, but very difficult to write more than a sentence or two. So I just checked out Coco Rocha’s blog again, and decided if she can do it, why can’t I?”

We asked Dinsmore what were the magic ingredients and why are so many people really fascinated by the life of an international fashion model?

“I just write and share what I actually do, what I wear, where I eat, what places I like in Paris or New York, and who I’ve met. I guess it’s a world that is very often a mystery and I let people get a feel for what it’s really like as a model drifting around the world meeting curious and wonderful designers and photographers. People are intrigued, for example, to find out that one of the favourite hang outs during Paris fashion week for jet-lagged models is not a glitzy nightclub, but instead a grubby Irish bar called Carrs.”

Dinsmore says the secret to success of building a blog and a Facebook presence is to share and share alike.

“I started my Facebook fanpage first. There was a point where I just had two fans on Facebook, one of whom was me! But slowly people began to like what I shared with them, and then in turn they shared what I was posting on Facebook with their friends. The more people shared my photos and updates with their friends, the more fans I seemed to get.

“The same applies with my blog. If people like what you are sharing with them, they’ll share it with other people. It helps if you appear on Fashion TV or in magazines that are distributed around the world, but even if you’re a make-up artist in Dublin, I am sure there are things you could share with people that they would find valuable and in turn tell their friends about.”

How to network, socially

Asked what are the do’s and don’ts of social networking, in her view, Dinsmore said simply: “Be genuine. Let people see what you actually do. Respond to people when you can.”

With such a fast-growing web presence, could Dinsmore establish a brand or business on the back of 100,000 Facebook fans and a wildly successful blog? Surely fashion brands have taken an interest?

“Levi’s made me a pair of jeans recently and I liked them, so I talked about them. But sometimes nice people give me very nice dresses or bring me to nice restaurants in Paris or nightclubs in London, but I’m not going to write about everything.

“If I do and someone has given me something for free or paid me to do something, I think it’s important you let people know. In any case, I much prefer promoting Irish brands and people, especially young and upcoming designers and photographers. And every so often that’s what I do.

“Do I think of it as a business? I’ve never thought of it as a business. It’s just a hobby I keep up on my iPad as I’m getting my make-up done or being driven to a shoot," Dinsmore said.